As Shao Ming stepped out of his apartment, he decided to leave via the first floor. Li Long's body still lay on the rooftop, and Shao Ming couldn't bring himself to leave from there.
But as he descended to the second floor, the sudden sound of a loud crash came from the door on his left, followed by a mutated creature's screeching roar.
Shao Ming quickly slowed his pace, crouched down, and continued toward the first floor. He moved as quietly as possible, making his way down and carefully pushing aside a pile of garbage blocking the door.
Through the half-barred window, he cautiously peered outside. Fortunately, the roar of the mutated creature hadn't attracted more of them. There were no signs of other mutated creatures on the street, likely drawn away by the helicopter's presence the previous evening.
He opened the front door, and the street was eerily silent.
To avoid making noise, Shao Ming slung his rifle across his back and opted to use the baseball bat as his main weapon.
This time, he turned right, heading away from the main road, walking along rows of residential buildings. The shops along the street were mostly empty, but they were mostly cafes and small shops that held little interest for him.
At this point, getting out of the city as quickly as possible was his priority.
He didn't have to walk far before seeing shipping containers piled up along the street. Shao Ming had to admire the city's authorities for their impressive execution. Six months ago, when the pandemic first struck, they had never been able to implement such a blockade.
Climbing directly over the containers wasn't feasible, but if he could get into one of the residential buildings on either side, he might be able to jump across to the containers from a window.
Of course, that would only work if the back entrances to the buildings weren't sealed off.
Behind the containers, there was a church. If he passed the church, he could head south toward the consulate.
Turning right past the containers, Shao Ming entered a courtyard surrounded by residential buildings. There were a few playground sets and a sandbox in the middle, the remains of a more peaceful time.
The exit on the left led to the church, but it was blocked. The entrance to the buildings ahead was uncertain—he wasn't sure whether the doors had been locked. If he could get into one of those buildings, he could climb out of a window on the upper floors and jump onto the container.
In the corner of one building's ground floor, a window was wide open. Shao Ming peered inside and saw two mutated creatures staring vacantly at the window.
His heart skipped a beat, and he froze, barely daring to breathe. The mutated creatures didn't seem to notice him—maybe they had poor vision, or perhaps their eyesight was completely gone.
Shao Ming cautiously took a step forward, and the creatures remained motionless.
Was this the "hibernation" state that Gary had mentioned?
To be on the safe side, Shao Ming shifted further to the opposite side of the building, distancing himself from the open window.
His nerves were on edge—he had to control the urge to make a sound, while keeping an eye on the movements inside the window and being wary of any other mutated creatures hiding in the surrounding buildings.
Just as Shao Ming inched forward, a loud thud came from behind him.
A mutated creature had slammed against the window from the other side.
The sound sent a shock of adrenaline through him, and before he could stop himself, he let out a loud exclamation, "Shit!"
The shout immediately alerted the mutated creatures nearby, and within moments, more began to stir from the surrounding buildings. The ones in the building with the open window were the first to rush out.
Without a second thought, Shao Ming swung his baseball bat at the first creature charging at him. The creature staggered backward and fell to the ground.
Before he could recover his stance, another mutated creature lunged at him. He barely had time to react, raising his hand to block the attack.
The creature sank its teeth into the book strapped to Shao Ming's right hand, and the force sent him stumbling backward. He saw that the first mutated creature had gotten back up, and he was still trapped in place.
In one swift motion, Shao Ming pulled a fruit knife from his backpack and drove it into the mutated creature's head.
The knife wasn't very sharp, but he struck precisely, stabbing it into the creature's temple. As he twisted the blade, the creature's brain turned to mush.
Finally, one down, but the danger was far from over. Through the windows of the surrounding buildings, more mutated creatures began to appear, banging against the glass and drawing closer.
Shao Ming knew he couldn't afford to stay in this spot for long. He shoved the dead creature's body toward the next one that was approaching and made a break for it.
The creature that had just gotten back on its feet collided with its fallen comrade's body, buying Shao Ming a brief moment to escape. He sprinted toward the entrance of the building ahead.
Luckily, the door wasn't locked, and it swung open with ease.
However, what he saw inside made his stomach drop—at least a dozen mutated creatures were packed into the hallway, and the noise from his earlier struggle had woken them up. They were now searching for the source of the sound.
Without hesitation, Shao Ming slammed the door shut behind him, knowing that the only remaining option was to cut through a nearby alley to reach another residential area.
He hoped there would be an escape route on the other side.
He dashed into the alley, but behind him, mutated creatures were already spilling out from the windows, coming from every direction.
The alley was short, and about halfway down, a large trash bin had been pushed beneath a fire escape. It was just the right height for an adult to climb.
Shao Ming quickly realized someone had used this route to escape before.
He glanced back. Some mutated creatures that had jumped out of the windows were limping toward him, likely having broken their legs. But a few others, having come from the ground floor, were charging at him at full speed.
Without wasting time, Shao Ming raised his rifle and quickly aimed at the first few creatures running toward him.
"Stay calm, stay calm," he told himself as he steadied his aim. The creatures weren't far off, but he knew that they didn't have much distance to cover before they reached him.
Training from shooting ranges kicked in as he squeezed the trigger. Two mutated creatures dropped to the ground.
He quickly adjusted his aim and fired again, bringing down two more creatures.
With the fastest creatures out of the way, Shao Ming seized the opportunity and scrambled up the trash bin.